Since the introduction of this mathematical system in 1992, only the Austrian terror Hermann Maier, "Herminator", had reached the 2,000-point mark in men, his total all stack, 23 years ago.

With a 13th victory this winter, Odermatt swept this record at the same time as his competitors, relegated to more than two seconds on Saturday, a rare chasm at this level.

Despite reduced visibility and a track made difficult by the temperature and the passage of his competitors, the Swiss, who had already crushed the first run, managed a superb second run, always on a wire, making up for every small mistake caused by his crazy speed.

Norway's Henrik Kristoffersen was pushed back to 2.11 seconds and Austria's Marco Schwarz to 2.29 seconds.

Even if there is still a slalom to play on Sunday to finish the season, Odermatt should stop there since he does not usually compete in this discipline.

More than ever king of skiing, "Odi" has accumulated thirteen successes (seven in giant, six in super-G) this winter to seize the big crystal globe and the small globes of the giant and super-G, two of his favorite disciplines.

He joins Sweden's Ingemar Stenmark (in 1979) and Austria's Hermann Maier (2001) and Marcel Hirscher (2018), co-holders of the men's record for wins in a single winter.

Maze's record in the viewfinder

Odermatt, Olympic champion of the giant in 2022, also won two world champion titles in February in Courchevel (downhill and giant). With his unique style, young age (25) and strength in three disciplines, he seems to be able to reign over alpine skiing for several years.

Switzerland's Marco Odermatt celebrates his triumph in the giant of the Alpine Ski World Cup Finals by throwing himself into the protections of the finish air, Saturday, March 16, 2023 in Soldeu (Andorra) © CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP

If he is looking for a new challenge, he can always challenge Slovenian Tina Maze's absolute points record (2,414 in 2013), which even Mikaela Shiffrin has not been able to beat, for now (2,106 this winter before a final race, 2,204 in 2019).

Also a thirteen-time winner this season, Shiffrin was dominated Saturday in the slalom by Slovakia's Petra Vlhova and Croatia's Leona Popovic.

"We had very different conditions, it was interesting to ski. It's good to finish like this in the slalom, it gives me indications of what I need to work on," she told Eurosport.

Long assured of a fifth big crystal globe, the American with 87 successes on the circuit, a new record set last week, is the favorite for the last race of the winter, a giant, Sunday in Andorra.

© 2023 AFP